Yellow Corp., one of the largest trucking companies in the country, shut down Sunday as it prepares to file for bankruptcy, the Wall Street Journal reported.
According to the Journal, Yellow YELL, +24.02% alerted employees and customers Sunday that it would cease all operations by midday. The move does not come as a big surprise — Yellow has seen customers flee in recent years and a bankruptcy filing has been widely expected, with liquidation likely to follow.
Yellow did not immediately reply to a request for confirmation or comment.
Yellow’s collapse imperils the jobs of about 30,000 people, including about 20,000 Teamsters, according to the Journal. Many of the company’s non-union workers were reportedly laid off Friday.
Yellow and the Teamsters last week were able to avert a strike. In June, management sued the union, claiming it was unnecessarily blocking restructuring plans, a charge the union denied while blaming poor management.
In 2020, Yellow received a $ 700 million loan from the government to stay afloat during the pandemic, but has repaid only about $ 230 million, government documents show. Overall, the company reportedly has about $ 1.5 billion in debt.
According to the Journal, Yellow’s closure should not cause many disruptions for customers, as most shifted their cargo shipment to rival companies in recent weeks.
Yellow shares have sunk 72% year to date, and have collapsed 85% over the past 12 months.